Women who are doing amazing things like this are part of the reason why we’re so psyched to host a Founder Friday event in Vancouver.
By Jessica Stillman (Editor, Women 2.0)
When Inc.com aimed to round up reasons Vancouver is hot for startups earlier this year they had no trouble coming up with six good ones, from great government support and simple Canadian politeness to top notch development talent and proximity to Silicon Valley.
Here at Women 2.0 (where our founder Shaherose is a Vancouver native) we couldn’t agree more with the list, but there’s one additional reason we’re excited to include Vancouver in our list of Founder Friday cities — the amazing women participating in the area’s vibrant startup community. Meet some of them below.
Alexandra Greenhill (Co-founder & CEO, mybesthelper.com)
The physician and mother of three co-founded My Best Helper, a web-based service that matches caregivers with people who need their services. The company took first place at Vancouver startup weekend in 2011 and took third place at the 20102 BCIC-New Ventures. Follow her at @mybesthelper.
Natalie Grunberg (Founder, Panty by Post)
With the declared mission to spread the pleasure of French lingerie all over the world, no wonder Grunberg’s company has been a bit with the media — she’s appeared on Dragon’s Den and in Glamour among others.
Melissa Kwan (Co-founder, Flat World Applications)
Flat World Apps is the company behind VIDA, a mobile application tailored for real estate project marketing, an interactive brochure for customers with a sales tool back end for developers and agents. Follow her at @msskwan.
Ramona Macleod (Founder & CEO, BigMama Services)
Ever blown you meager student budget on overpriced textbooks? MacLeod, who went to university later in life as a single parent, feels your pain. That’s why she created textbook rental company BigMama. Follow her at @RamonaMacLeod.
Tea Nicola (CEO & Co-founder, WealthBar)
A graduate of Vancouver’s Launch Academy, WealthBar offers online financial and wealth management services. Nicola is the Vancouver chapter lead for Ladies Learning code. Follow her at @teanicola.
Maura Rodgers (Founder, Strutta)
Besides founding online competition company Strutta, Rodgers is one of the founders of Launch Party Vancouver, a series of mixers aimed at showcasing local startups.
Alexandra Skey (Co-founder & Chief Marketing Officer, Spokal)
Another company out of Launch Academy, Spokal aims to make online marketing easier for small business. The company showcased its progress at BCTIA’s 2013 Demo Day earlier this year. Follow Skey at @AlexandraSkey.
Christine Sommers (CEO & Co-founder, ePACT Network)
Yaletown Venture Partners invested an undisclosed sum in ePACT, a ‘LinkedIn for disaster-preparedness,’ earlier this year and the company was also selected for a slot in the federal government’s Canadian Technology Accelerator program.
Based in Vancouver? Join us for our next Founder Friday event on September 13.
Jessica Stillman (@entrylevelrebel) is an editor at Women 2.0 and a freelance writer with interests in unconventional career paths, generational differences, and the future of work. She writes a daily column for Inc.com and has blogged for CBS MoneyWatch, GigaOM and Brazen Careerist, among others.